Climate drivers

The climate drivers are looking like they are just going to make things worse this spring.

The bureau currently has an El Nino watch in place, indicating there is twice the normal chance of El Nino, associated with dry conditions in the country's north and east, forming in the coming months.

But Ms Duell is not just focused on the Pacific.

"At the moment we're keeping quite a close eye to the north-west of Australia," she said.

"We've had cooler than usual water there for a little while and sometimes that can be the indication of the start of what we call the positive Indian Ocean Dipole event."

Ms Duell said cool water in the north-east can cause a change in the way frontal systems move across the south of the country.

"They often slip further south than they usually would," she said.

"That's something that we've been seeing happening through winter and that looks like it may continue to happen during spring."

Mr Webber said Water NSW has been working with local landholders and communities to ensure essential human needs can be provided.

"Rather than releasing water subject to water orders from customers individually, it would really be just a more significant, perhaps a one-off or series of releases at an agreed time," Mr Webber said of a possible contingency plan should worse come to worst.

"So that people with basic stock and domestic access rights can top up their storage.

"Just to make sure they've got at least an extended water supply while we wait for the weather to change."

Mr Webber said the water security situation for most water customers is quite good but he does not want to give those suffering false hope.

"The dry land farming situation for farmers reliant on naturally occurring waterways is quite dire."